Properties Magazine March 2017 : Page 13

BOMA BUSINESS Exploring timely topics with BOMA members Benefits for Building Commissioning A priority for building owners and property managers is to ensure their buildings are operating efficiently, as designed and as they intended. One of the most effective ways to determine this is by commissioning the building as part of the initial design or “retro” commissioning for a building which has been in operation. Building commissioning includes verifying that the building systems are operating the way they were designed, based on the owner’s intent. ASHRAE describes the commissioning process as a capable way of verifying that a facility and its systems meet the Owner’s Project Requirements (OPR) or, in other words, the owner’s basis of design for the project. HVAC com-missioning is recognized as an integral process needed for design, construc-tion, operation and maintenance of HVAC systems for commercial build-ings. Commissioning is becoming more desired by owners across the country and is also a require-ment of newer Energy Codes. A challenge for new construction or renovation projects is that multiple system components need to be integrated together to create a fully functional system. This challenge often can cause inefficiency with system operations, higher mainte-nance expenses with potential system failures, along with tenants being uncom-fortable within the space. On any given project, there are multiple contractors, suppliers, con-sultants and owners’ reps who, while having the best interest of the owner and project at heart, do not always col-laborate successfully, often neglecting the proper and efficient operational set up of the building systems. Generally, existing building maintenance staff are not properly trained on the installed systems, and instead rely on the con-tractors/suppliers who were involved on the project. Unfortunately, it becomes evident when a problem sur-faces that there is confusion as to who owns the problem. When the commis-sioning process begins at the design phase, it is evident who will have responsibility for various issues; should a problem arise, the owner, property manager and maintenance team will find it much easier to identify and rectify the problem. The benefit of commissioning is realized on many levels. The building owner will have complete documenta-tion of any issues that need to be resolved. The owner will know that the equip-ment is operating as intended and that efficiency and comfort will be attained. The contractors will have documentation of all the HVAC equip-ment’s performance, which can lead to fewer call backs. Long term, commis-sioning saves money and maximizes building systems efficiencies. In short, we all win with commissioning. P BOMA Greater Cleveland is proud to provide this space to our Associate Members so they can inform, educate and share their knowledge with property management professionals. This article was written by Jerry DeLiberato, business development manager at TES Engineering. Jerry can be reached at 440.614.0362 or jdeliberato@ tesengineering.com. TES Engineering can be found on the web at www.tesengineering.com. ENERGY SO YOU DON’T HAVE TO Contact us today and gain more control over your building’s energy costs WE SPEAK Preferred natural gas supplier since 1996 ANDREA LONGBRAKE Senior Commercial Account Manager 614.659.5190 alongbrake@IGSenergy.com www.propertiesmag.com 13